It is known from my earlier application that in the desalination or demineralization of liquids, especially aqueous solutions, such as all types of water, in a succession of separate absorption and desorption processes, the ionic components of the dissolved salts present in liquid are absorbed on ion exchange layers and subsequently displaced from these exchange layers by ion streams produced in electrode chambers. In the production of these displacing ion streams in the electrode chambers, the counterions of the displacing ion streams are retained by means of selective barrier layers, so-called ion exchange membranes.
In the operation of such equipment, a disadvantage has been found in that the counterion concentration in the electrode chambers decreases continuously, resulting in increases in electrical resistance and energy consumption, and finally the desired desalination effect is reduced. It has also been found that this concentration decrease is due to counterions diffusing through the barrier membrane into the desalination chambers and then passing into the brine chamber, where they are flushed out with the brine.